Changing Hearts
by Otempora21
Summary: This is obviously a story of Lily Evans and James Potter, two of the most brilliant magical beings in all of history. Read the story of their trials and tribulations that led them to parent the child that was destined to defeat the Dark Lord.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

This is obviously a story of Lily Evans and James Potter, two of the most brilliant magical beings in all of history. Lily grew up a muggle

child, knowing nothing of the magical world to which she belonged. James was raised in a wizard household, aware of the expectations

that magic required. The two met during their years at Hogwarts, the quintessential school of magical learning. This is the story of their

trials and tribulations that led them to parent the child that was destined to defeat the Dark Lord.

* * *

Lily Evans awoke on September the first, anxious and ready. Seven years earlier she had received her Hogwarts letter, informing her that

she was indeed a witch. Now her older sister, Petunia, often referred to her as one, though Lily knew this terminology was slightly

different. Petunia, however, is a story for another chapter. Running through her veins was magical blood, and at the time her eleven year

old self could not wait to begin her schooling. As soon as she found out she ran to her local library to check out books on the subject of

magic. What she found deeply disappointed her. There were accounts of witches burned at the stake throughout the ages for revealing

their magical ability. There were tales of murder and violence against these magical people. But most of all, Lily found that in almost all of

these books it was clear that no one believed in magic or magical people. She resolved right then and there that she would never reveal

her powers to anyone but her own family for fear of her own safety. This is what Lily was pondering as she finished packing her things for

school. She was about to embark on her seventh and final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This was the year that

determined the rest of her life, though she knew relatively little of life outside of Hogwarts. Lily still often felt she knew nothing of the

wizarding world, even after six years of magic. The truth was she was a muggle first, and often thought of life in their terms. Sometimes

she wondered what it would be like if she were raised in a wizard's house, how things would be different. But this was silly. She had a

whole year of Hogwarts to get through, and then she could worry about that. This year she was head girl, and with that came many

responsibilities. She looked forward to being a leader of the school and felt she had earned the title from years of hard work. She was, in

fact, at the top of most of her classes, despite her childhood. Not that it was easy. She felt she constantly needed to prove herself since

she was not of pure blood. Needless to say, she earned the respect of most who encountered her, save perhaps the Slytherins. They

hardly counted, though. She was a Gryffindor and usually loathed the Slytherins on account of their constant teasing and bullying. She

stuck with her friends though and even enlisted the help of some of the more exasperating boys in her house. They called themselves the

Marauders, though why they ever decided on that name she never figured out. " Good God," she thought, "now I've started referring to

them as a single entity!" What kind of people decide to name their 'group' anyway? They were quite helpful though. James Potter and

Sirius Black, leaders of the infamous Marauders, were probably the smartest in the school, besides herself of course. It wasn't as if they

tried at their studies though, and this infuriated Lily to no end. It seemed they could stay out until all hours of the night and still ace the test

the next day. Of course, this won the hearts of many unsuspecting teachers. Lily knew they would never cheat, though, because they

were above that. And they never failed to make this known. Remus Lupin was also a part of this mysterious group; he was the most

sensible of the four. Remus kept the others in line, always helping and assisting their pranks when needed. Peter Pettigrew played the part

of the fourth Marauder; he however never quite fit in with the group. He was not nearly as bright as the other three, but his loyalty was

unwavering. Thus he was considered part of their group, though nowhere close to their league. These were the profiles of the infamous

Marauders, and Lily couldn't help but admire them. They were truly good people, and she knew they would do anything for her. She

wouldn't mind Remus being her counterpart Head Boy, though James and Sirius might be a bit difficult. They were all prefects because

of their good grades, but the boys didn't quite treat the title with respect. On the contrary, they often used their badges to get out of

trouble or more likely to cause trouble. Over the years, they had at various times lost these coveted titles due to some infraction of the

rules but always managed to win them back via the charming personalities. Lily's female friends were just as cunning and clever as these

boys. Alice and Emily were also near the top of their class, though they cared much less about grades than Lily. The two kept Lily in

check with studying too much and helped her feel as though she belonged to the magical world. Together they made up a trio that

seemed to others as inseparable. They had been rooming together since their first year, when they had all met. They had become fast

friends and remained so over the years. Alice was the quietest of the three, preferring to listen and observe rather than interfere. She

opened up more with Lily and Emily than with others, and she was very improved since their first year. Emily on the other hand was loud

and spirited. She was constantly talking or singing and never failed to lighten the mood. Lily was the mediator between the two and

together it seemed as if they made one complete person.

* * *

Lily made herself break away from thinking of all these memories. "I have got to stop doing that!" she exclaimed. "I'll never get

everything ready in time." So she haphazardly threw in the remaining items on her bed and proceeded to haul her trunk down the stairs.

She was greeted by the sight of her family seated around their small breakfast table. While she more closely resembled her mother, she

was more like her father in personality. Her dad was always reading and encouraged this trait in his daughter. Mr. Evans wanted Lily to

excel in both of her worlds and felt reading was the key to doing this. The only was to become anything was through schooling, and he

knew she got enough of that in the wizarding world. So he settled for keeping her up to date with the current affairs of his world. He

made it a point to be supportive of Lily as her sister never quite understood her uniqueness. He believed Petunia really did understand but

was jealous of Lily all the same. Petunia shot Lily a glare across the table as her mother brought out breakfast. The four quickly ate and

loaded the car of Lily's things. Then they all got in and drove to the train station. Petunia preferred to wait in the car while Lily was

dropped off so they said their goodbyes in the backseat. In reality Petunia despised walking near anyone abnormal, namely people like

Lily. She just couldn't understand why Lily would want to be around these people all day long. "It must just be one of the innumerable

weird things about Lily," she thought. "Why did I get stuck with a sister like her?" she wailed aloud just as a boy with black shaggy hair

walked by. He peered into the window and smiled just a little too strained, as if thinking she were the odd one. Petunia looked away

when she saw he was carrying another blasted owl like her sister's and realized he was a wizard. She groaned aloud and wanted nothing

more than to be rid of Lily and her abnormality for another school year.

* * *

Lily hugged her parents goodbye before she passed through the brick barrier leading onto Platform 9 and 3/4. She promised her father

she would read the muggle newspapers he sent and her mother that she would write often. Every year it was hard saying goodbye to her

parents for almost a year, and this year was no different. She loved them both very much but couldn't help feeling they didn't understand

her at all. She was a witch and they were muggles. Their lives were world's apart. She waved goodbye one last time and took a deep

breath. Then she placed both hands on her trolley and began pushing it with all her might while thinking, "God I packed way too much!"

And then, "This is my last time doing this," she thought sadly. But she pressed on and soon found herself before a familiar scarlet train.

Feeling her heart and spirits soar, she smiled more than she had in the past summer. She was going back to Hogwarts, the place she felt

she truly belonged in this world.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

As she proceeded onto the platform, Lily searched the crowd for signs of her friends. She really hadn't seen them at all over the summer,

just a few sporadic notes from each of them telling of their respective vacations. With her bright auburn hair and shimmering green eyes

she attracted a great deal of attention, though this was hardly unusual. Lily commanded an air of confidence and authority that was

recognized by all. Seeing a mop of dark hair in the distance, she hurried forward toward the group. There she found none other than

James Potter and Sirius Black, reclining against the Hogwarts Express. Why they didn't board the train to find a compartment of their

own she didn't know. She could only assume they were waiting for someone, besides it wasn't as if they would be hard-pressed to find a

compartment. The Marauders occupied the customary compartment at the dead center of the train, which that had personalized in their

own unique way, or so Lily had heard. From there it was said that they masterminded their annual collection of pranks, plotting against

the teachers and students alike. Not that anyone minded of course; it was seen as a sort of honor to be pranked by the Marauder,

perhaps the Slytherins being the exception (as they always seem to be). "Alright there, Evans?"

she heard a voice drone from close by and looked to see James and Sirius watching her. Previously they had been discussing the topic of

Head Girl:

"Who do you think got the job?" asked Sirius, waving at a group of Ravenclaw girls walking by.

"I hope it's Lily. I think this is finally my year. Our year. I mean it's got to be, right? It _is_ our last year here. She's got to come

around!"James rambled, something Sirius was getting used to.

"Let's just hope it's not someone too awful. Evans can be a bit too rule-abiding for me. You don't want someone who stifles you. Then

again maybe you do so that you're not given too many responsibilities. I still can't figure out how you got the badge."

" Tell me about it," James muttered, "I think Dumbledore's finally cracked.'

"All the better for us! I sure hope this year isn't as boring as last year. I just want to be done with school! " Sirius exclaimed and began

searching the station for their fellow Marauders.

James took this opportunity to study his best friend. He had changed so much in their time at Hogwarts. Not the Sirius had matured

astoundingly, he was just different. It really was amazing how the two became friends. Coming from completely opposite families, the two

were expected to loathe each other. But being the rebels that they were, the two had formed a unique friendship, becoming closer than

brothers. James smiled as he remembered Sirius in his first year. From the beginning, Sirius won the title of the school 'heart-throb,'

James being a close second, of course. Sirius had a devil-may-care attitude from the start, which James had almost immediately adapted.

Surprisingly, people seemed to like them more with this trait of their's. His heart skipped a beat as he spotted a familiar red-head coming

his way.

* * *

" All right there, Evans?" he questioned and immediately regretted the use of her surname.

"I'm fine, Potter. And yourself?" she responded.

He cringed as he called him by his last name. "Just lovely, Lily. Did you have a good summer?"

"It was decent, but that can be expected, as my sister was just darling to live with. I really have to be going though, I have to be in the

Heads compartment soon." And with that she left him.

"Well I guess that answers our question," Sirius claimed, laughing at the irony of it. "Guess our seventh year is going to be interesting,

after all. Come on," he said as the clock tolled eleven o'clock. Sirius skipped ahead, humming a song to himself with James following

closely behind, happy to finally be going back to his second home.

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